BEACH BANTER:

The Local scene Mid. winter 2009

It's the classic Winter of our discontent. AC's private economy is spiraling down with the rest of America, only it seems were in an even steeper dive. You noticed I mentioned the private economy. It seems these days the public sector has come unglued for the most part from the private economy. This could become a problem if we don't pull out of this dive soon.

The REVEL Casino ( being built) layoffs

With Revel's lay offs this week of over 400 people the rapid decline of the local Casino Industry is now apparent to everyone, especially the investor class ( or what's left of it). Nevertheless, the local toll roads and bridges seem to think it's boom time and have all raised their rates. ( they say because of the BOOM in AC no less!) Some folks are just greedy no matter what the season or the times.

The Nat'l scene

President Obama has passed his Nat'l stimulus bill in the house, no Repubs. voted for it. What hypocrites these people are, they vote to pass every single BV$H spending bill for 8 yrs. never vote against one of them and right out the door they suddenly find their (LOL) fiscal conservative voice again. I guess when a GOP President does it it's ok, right? Oh well let them who cares. The GOP is largely just the regional party of the deep south now. It should replace the Elephant with the Stars and Bars as it's symbol.

The Int'l Scene

All the big the big economic brains and some world leaders met in Davos, Switzerland this week to discuss the world wide recession that is rapidly deepening in many parts of the globe. They of course flew their 1st class and are being hosted at many gala affairs while billions starve and don't even have clean drinking water. While all this is happening the Amazon is still being burned to raise cattle for McDonald's ( which is booming lately, no surprise here.). Rare Ipe wood trees are still being harvested for boardwalks and decks and the oceans are all rising. In other words nothing much has changed. Have a nice day :)

THE DUNESDAY CHRONICLES

HARVEY CEDARS, LBI, NJ after the 1962 Ash Wed. Nor'easter

Interesting article at the title link. Hey, at least it's not about Maryland.

BETHANY BEACH MD.

This must be Maryland beaches week. Today's story comes to us from Bethany beach , MD. Click on the title and read how Bethany Beach is breathlessly waiting for it's beach to be replenished for summer by YOU the taxpayers of America. Getting your beach replenished is getting to be like having your nails done, for 5 or 6 mil. but whose counting right?

OCEAN CITY, MD

Here's a another story about your typical hypocritical GOP Congress critter speaking out both sides of his butt. These guys always talk about cutting somebody else's spending never their own. Their tag line is cut Big Gov't, but read the small print and it says "the other guys not mine." Anyway, read the story @ the title link it's about a beach project being proposed for Ocean City, MD.

ONE GALVESTON - THE SAGA OF IKE CONTINUES!

Does it ever end? The fight over what to do post- Hurricane Ike is featured in a great post in a Texas blog called One Galveston, read all about it @ the title link! All the usual suspects are doing all the usual things. Check it out!

ADSENSE

A few times a year I ask everyone to please remember to click on the ads that run between my daily posts! You don't have to read them just open then a few dozen times today or whenever. Every time you click on them and open them Google gives me some spare change. Am I pan handling here? Maybe? Ok, so I'm rattling my cup. Thanks!!

BEACH BANTER

The Changing of the Guard

This was the week many of us out here had been waiting for. The BV$H era has finally ended with the official changing of the guard in D.C. Obama and his team sprinted off the line immediately changing or reversing or halting dozens of BV$H era policies and mandates. This was a good thing. However , BV$h and his crime syndicate had 8 very long yrs. to foul things up royally and the results are everywhere. America and the world is now mired in what some are calling "THE GREAT RECESSION." Today, in many respects we have returned to the bad old times of the GREAT DEPRESSION. The worst feature of the Great Depression was a massive contraction of the private economy then, this is happening right in front of our eyes today. Predictions are that in 2009 and maybe 2010 we will be witnessing the loss of as many as 750,000 jobs a month! This recession is already longer then any recession since the 1930's era and the worst job losses in many cases happen after the official period of recession, not during it. Obama has a big job ahead of him as regards the economy. His plans to try and use Fed. money to cushion the impacts of this calamity are commendable, but I worry that most of this well intended money will simply vanish into the maul of a hugely well connected network of private Corps. and the associated public bureaucracies that feed them.

THE SAND LOBBY PREPARES TO CONSUME PART OF THE OBAMA STIMULUS

A terribly wasteful example of how this might occur already exists with the 500+ so called Army Corp. Shore Protection Projects. I'm reading & hearing daily how many of these projects are getting prepared to lobby for some of this so called stimulus $$. They will go to Congress and try and portray these Projects as "shovel ready" infrastructure projects and they will attempt to make them look as if they are building bridges or paving roads. Sadly, my guess is they'll probably get away with it given the almost panicky climate in D.C. these days regarding the economy. If this is how the Obama Stimulus is going to unfold it's simply not going to work. Army Corp. projects will not and do not create many jobs. They are short term sand moving operations that utilize highly specialized small teams of engineers and workmen. Most of the money ends up as profits that land in the hands of the same old few folks at the top. These projects are some of the worst examples of the old and I'd hoped discredited idea called trickle down economics. They might in fact be the poster child of just how trickle down doesn't in fact work and why. The sand promptly washes away and the huge profits disappear into the hands of an the already wealthy elite. The only thing stimulated here are their bank accounts.

Sagaponack, LI, NY

Sagaponack on Long Island , NY - near Southhampton

Here's a poster child for what I've been talking about. Sagaponack, NY is a posh exclusive Long Island beachfront community of just 55 homes. These people live up on cliffs overlooking an eroding beach( what's new here most are worldwide) and are now asking for 20 mil. to put the rest of the beach back in front of their exclusive mostly vacation homes. They want some of the Obama stimulus funds for this. Is this going to stimulate the economy folks? It's just more of the same B.S. "socialism for the rich." If the Dems. give these folks the money for what amounts to private beaches for 55 families then don't expect much stimulus from the stimulus. This angers me and it should anger you as well! The economy is in the toilet and these folks want what amounts to $365,000 a home to put sand temporarily in front of their cliff homes? After that washes away they'll expect another 20 mil. to replace it as their right no less. This is while millions lose their jobs, health Ins. homes, etc...

Read more about this at the title link!

DEP to put 8 Mil. of State $$ on To Strathmere.

The State is by the Governor's own reckoning buried in debt up to it's eyeballs. Don't believe it! The recent DEP Sand Castle project in Strathmere was doubled from 4.1 mil. to 8.2 mil. The 8.2 will also wash away and the town is hoping the Feds will pick up the tab forever soon. Millions have no health care, millions more are losing their homes and millions more are losing hope and this is what has come to represent a jobs program?

SHOVEL READY?

If this is what qualifies as a "shovel" ready infrastructure project in the coming Obama stimulus, we have a problem folks. The truth is just dumping sand endlessly on places like this will never create jobs nor will it in the end work ( no pun intended). Nor is it infrastructure, no matter what Marlowe and Co. ( the K street lobbyists) tell our Congress and President. It's just more pork for the Dredgers. ( a few wealthy families). The fact that they are so shameless as to pitch this pork as a needed part of the stimulus program is disgusting and unethical to say the least.

The Ultimate Example of Trickle UP Economics In ACTION!

These projects all of them might be the perfect analogy for trickle down economics in reverse. Billions of taxpayer $$ are dumped in front of the mostly 2nd and third homes and businesses of a few tens of thousands almost exclusively wealthy individuals and Big Corps. It's suppose to protect these properties, so in essence it's a subsidy for millionaires and billionaires. Sound familiar? Build too close to the ocean or invest in risky mortgage backed securities, no problem. The taxpayers we'll pick up your bad gambling debts. Is this how were going to get our dying economy going again? Or is this is just more faith based economics folks? It certainly has nothing to do with scientific reality that's for sure. Pres. Obama said yesterday to the whole world that science was back, we'll see.

OBAMA OATH DO OVER!

Justice Roberts administering the oath a second time!

@ 7:35 today in the WH map room President Obama was administered the oath of office for a second time by Chief Justice Roberts. All day long the question of the oath had been all over radio and TV and the Internet and Constitutional scholars of all political persuasions seemed to agree that on the question of the oath being administered properly, there was no wiggle room, it was either done right or it wasn't. So, Roberts and Obama's legal adviser apparently decided to do it over again, just to be sure no questions would ever arise over the fumbled first attempt yesterday on the Capitol steps. This was the 4th time in U.S. history the oath has been given a second time, according to these same legal scholars and historians.

North Carolinas' Barrier Islands Most @ Risk Today!

The Famous Light house at Cape Hatteras , N.C.

Good article at the title link. The artist rendering of the Light House shows it at it's new location, having been moved almost 1,500 feet from it's orginial location by the shoreline. It was moved in the last years of the 20th century when the Nat'l Park Service finally realized it was either move it or lose it to the Atlantic. In the coming century many other structures and cities will face this choice.

OBAMA'S DAY!

OBAMA last evening - pic. from our own Jean Antolini working the event!

He's President!! Reality is more amazing then Hollywood sometimes isn't it both for bad events like 9/11 and good one's like our 1st African- American President.

NEW EPA REPORT ON SEA LEVEL RISE!

Check out @ the title link, famed NY TIMES journalist and science editor Cornelia Dean's article on the latest EPA report on the effects of global warming on sea level rise. Dean wrote what has now become a classic book about humanity's effort's to control what is happening along our coastlines. (AGAINST THE TIDE). I highly recommend this as a starting pt. book for anyone interested in understanding what is happening on our coasts today. The book is over 10 yrs. old now but is still relevant today.

THE SURF CITY MUNITIONS FIASCO CLEAN UP IN PHASE 3

The bill just keeps rising for the clean up on LBI and yrs. are now going by to get it done. Read all about phase 3 @ the title link. None of this bothers the Corp. or the DEP or the City for that matter. Their attitude is as if they did nothing wrong here. Actually, the last 8 yrs. of BV$Hworld were one giant example of the LBI situation. The operative phrase for these yrs. should be remembered as "Just move along folks nothing to see here."

THE LATEST FROM MARS!

The Possible Source of that Methane recently detected on Mars?

Ok, so we might have discovered the source of all that hot smelly gas rising from Mars after all!

WHAT FLYING 1st CLASS GETS U ON U.S. AIR !

SURFING LAKE SUPERIOR IN WINTER!

Surfing lake Superior in Winter!

Here's a hardy breed of Surfer ! Click on the title link for the whole story and pics!!

SCIENCE FRI - MARS METHANE!

Image of Mars Methane Release ( Mars farts)

Interesting story about Mars at the title link. It seems scientists have now pretty much confirmed that significant amounts of the gas methane are being produced by something ( very possibly living) somewhere beneath Mars surface. If this can traced to a living source you can bet a Mars exploratory mission by humans will be called for by most of the scientific community. Since no humans have ever set foot on Mars and none of our exploratory vehicles like the Mars Rovers carried anything organic the old axiom of farts ( the one who first smelt it probably dealt it) will not apply , in this instance. ;)

BEST JOB ON EARTH?

The Great Barrier Reef - Australia

Tired of the old 9 to 5 are ya? Click on the title link then and read about this job posting in far way Australia. The only tough part of course is the commute!

AC GATEWAY PROJECT STALLS!!

AC GATEWAY HOLDINGS

Cape May developer and ex-Casino Control Commission head Curtis Bashaw, has apparently bit off more then he can chew. A souring AC economy and declining AC casino business environment has forced Bashaw and his business partner Wally Barr to put on hold their planned AC Gateway casino/hotel project, that was slated to start this year.

THE CHELSEA

Bashaw had opened AC's first non-casino hotel this past summer "The Chelsea" just as the nat'l economy tanked. The truth is he's buried himself in debt on that project and it's reported to be doing poorly. Whose surprised? Bashaw might have had the inside rail in Cape May being raised there and reportedly inheriting a fortune from his family down there , but he's not an AC person or businessman and his attempt to create a market ( that doesn't exist) for his non-casino hotel was IMHO doomed from the start. The properties he bought were two old hotels ( The Holiday Inn & Howard Johnson's) that needed a fortune to redo and frankly they don't look that much better combined. Foe one thing, they're not even on the Boardwalk! Anyway, with plenty of far cheaper rooms surrounding his property and Casinos begging for customers his timing was too say the least poor.
In short Bashaw is having his head handed to him in AC, so it's no surprise that he's now taking a BIG step back. Curtis Bashaw thought he could use all of his considerable political connections in the establishment ( Corzine etc.) to make his way into AC's market. In a better time he might have pulled it off. Today, however he's just another businessman whose gambled way over his head and borrowed to do it! In today's economy being buried in debt isn't a winning hand, unless your a big bank and Bashaw unfortunately ( for him) isn't as they say too big to fail.

THE GOLDEN GATE - TIME LAPSE

Here's a real Bridge Hansen, not that rusting 80 yr. old piece of junk your overcharging all of us to use. Margate should tell you to stop using our town's name on it since you claim it's not located in Margate. Call it what it's real name is Pork Island bridge.

COMPARATIVE BRIDGE TOLLS

Margate Bridge - Main Span - two other smaller spans 2 miles of road. - $3.00 round trip

Delaware Memorial twin Bridge - $3.00 for cars

Walt Whitman Bridge - $3.00 for cars entering Philly - zero leaving!

Ben Franklin Bridge - $3.00 entering Philly - Zero leaving!

What's wrong with this picture? For one thing The Margate Bridge is 80 yrs. old & it looks it. The other bridges are real bridges not rickety old antiques nor are they draw bridges. The other bridges cost hundreds of times more to build and maintain, yet the cost to travel over them relative to the costs of the Margate Bridge system is absurd. To add insult to injury if you car pool over the Golden Gate in SF. it's free!

MARGATE BRIDGE PROTEST!!

The collage is of the Margate Bridge protest that took place today at noon at the Margate bridge. Dozens of people came out with signs and turned away cars as they attempted to go over the bridge. Many of the cars beeped their horns and even the people going over the bridge gave us the thumbs up sign as they beeped their horns. More actions are planned as the public anger over the greedy toll hikes by this privately owned bridge further inflame public opinion.

BOYCOTT & ORGANIZE!!

I told the people gathered that the only effective way ( in the short term) to get any change with this bridge was to BOYCOTT it and put a big dent into Hansen's profits. This can be done. As Hansen has told people himself GO AROUND if you don't like the toll. Ok, let's start doing that folks. Ask yourself before you use it, do I absolutely positively need to take this route? If not go to Ventnor or Longport and exit the Island over those non-toll roads and bridges. This however, is only a tactic not a goal.

THE GOAL!

The goal of some of us is to take this bridge from the greedy owners and make it another non-toll bridge and roadway. The State of NJ buys land , roads, bridges , beaches etc. for public use. This is one of the last private bridge and road systems left in NJ and we want it condemned and taken with eminent domain. This is a proper use of Eminent domain! Over the course of the last century and half NJ and other states have taken thousands of private bridges and toll roads and turned them into our public hiway and bridge systems of today. The Margate Bridge then is a not very quaint anachronism ( unlike Lucy, which is a quaint anachronism). It's time for this Bridge and road system to become part of the public system. No other bridge on this Island charges a toll. The toll today on the Walt Whitman bridge and the Ben Franklin Bridge going Pa., is $3 for a round trip! These are enormous bridges that require immense amounts of up keep. The Margate bridge and road system by comparison is a midget.

$3.00 = a 750% increase!

Just 10 yrs. ago this bridge charged 25 cents a crossing. Today it's $1.50! Thats a 750% increase in a time when inflation was averaging about 4% a yr. Hansen wants us to believe his costs to maintain this bridge have risen hundreds of X's greater then inflation? Since his company refuses to open his books to the public or the State , we can only assume he doesn't want anyone to know those costs and his profits. Why? Because, he's making an enormous profit is why and he's now doubled it in a moment! It's called GREED folks and as long as we all feed it it thrives!

EMINENT DOMAIN as a Solution

The Margate Bridge pays Margate $34K a yr. in taxes. What it pays E.H.T and possibly Northfield is at this writing unknown. My guess though is Hansen and Co. doesn't pay all that much in property taxes on this gold mine. If that's the case then we should petition our Reps. to condemn and take this system and turn it over to the State as part of the State hiway system or the County possibly. Will the Pols want to do this? NOT!! Will they, if forced to by PUBLIC PRESSURE ? I believe it's a good bet they would.

OCEAN CITY'S NEW ROADWAYS & BRIDGES

We can look at other local examples of where very recently major road and bridge systems have been totally rebuilt with over $125,000,000 of State and Fed. taxes dollars. ( Ocean Cities two main access road systems). Why then should Margate be the only coastal town in NJ where the residents and visitors are basically held up at gun pt. and charged what amounts to Hiway robbery? I urge all of you to call your local , county , State and Fed. representatives and start raising holy hell about this insult! We all pay enormous taxes and it's a crime that we then have to pay again to this private company , when without our tax dollars that bridge couldn't even exist in the first place!

RECESSION & OUR LOCAL ECONOMY

It beggars the imagination in this time of Nat'l and Int'l economic distress that this Bridge owner and the other bridge and Hi way authorites , such as the AC XPressway , the Garden State and the Ocean City Bridge ( northern bridge) have the gall and the chutzpah to raise not lower their tolls! While millions are losing their jobs and our local mainsty Industry ( the Casinos) are showing double digit declines in their revenue and profits, it's absolutely astounding to watch these greedy bastards raising their tolls! The Xpressway authority in a public meeting and in writing stated the reason it needed to raise it's tolls was because of the BOOM no less in Atlantic City! What planet are these people living on folks? It's this kind of greed and delusional thinking on the part of some of us that is ruining it for the rest of us! Time to draw another line in the sand!

BOYCOTT!!!

THE MARGATE BRIDGE !!
DETOUR!!

The Boycott and Protest over the enormous and unjustified recent toll hike on the OLLIE HANSEN GOLDEN GATE ( formerly called the Margate Bridge) is growing daily. Join many of us today at NOON at the foot of the bridge in Margate on Jerome ave. to protest the GREEDY owner!!

DON'T FEED THE GREED!!

DETOUR!!

LEUCADIA BLOG

Encinitas Beach

Great Blog from So. Calif. click on title link to read this funny story about a beach replenishment project with a funny twist.

IT'S COLD OUTSIDE - THE CHOIR ( 1967)

The 60's just keep on providing something new even today almost 40 yrs. later. Here's a band from that era , one that I never heard of doing a classic 60's style pop song back then. Title is about right for Jan. ( any Jan.) also. Enjoy!

GULF SHORES & ORANGE BEACH, ALABAMA

"Until we began building out the beaches it was impossible to lose them. They just moved from one place to the other. Now we've plunked down billion dollar developments on the sand and decided nature should stay still."

Click on the title page and read more about this guys visit. he has a lot of very smart things to say about the beach. The quote above is from his blog post.

WEEARTH

Here's a new site that is of interest check it out @ the title link. They have a great story about rising sea levels and it's effect on Calif.'s beaches.

BOYCOTT!!!

BOYCOTT THE MARGATE BRIDGE !!

Starting today I recommend that every resident of Margate, Ventnor and Longport BOYCOTT Mr. Hansen's 120 ft. Golden Gate. Who is this clown kidding the bridge is 100 yrs. old he should be paying us to go over it. It's high time the State of NJ did it's duty and seized this anachronism. It's the only private bridge left in NJ that's raping the public and the politicians don't give a damn!

DETOUR AROUND IT !!

Go around this bridge, yes it's an extra few miles and a few more traffic lights, but it's worth it to avoid giving these vandals a dime. If you feel you must use it then only use it one way. This is the only way we can make Hansen understand his greed has forced us go around his extortion bridge.

Click on the title link & Read the article from today's region section of the AC Press!

BEACH BANTER - 2009!!

It's 2009!! We started the New Yr. with a frozen Polar Bear Plunge in Margate! We ended 2008 with the greedy Ole Hansen co. raising the Margate bridge tolls by 50 % ! Oh well I guess Ole needed a bail-out like the rest. Hansen might have jumped the shark on this one though and it's very possible that he just might be facing a Boycott soon. Truth is if the politicans had any guts ( which most of them don't) they'd long ago condemned the damn bridge and taken it. If there was ever a clear case for eniment domain this it it! Instead, they seem to be much more comfortable taken average people's homes and giving them to characters like Ole and Co. Maybe , this time though we can turn the tables on this mini-Golden Gate Bridge to Nowhere. Welcome to 2009 time once again to fight back!

MALIBU

I bet you were looking for the classic shot of the surfing beach and pier weren't you? Actually, that's just a small part of Malibu beach in Calif. The article @ the title link is all about what's happening to Malibu today as sea levels rise along the coast.

MARGATE'S POLAR PLUNGE 2009!!

Margate's Plunge !!

Bright sunny and 21 degs. not for the faint hearted this yr, nevertheless thousand took the plunge @ the Margate Pier!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2009! TAKING THE PLUNGE!!

The POLAR BEAR PLUNGE!!

Take your pick this year Ventnor and Margate are holding plunges on New Years Day. Read all about Ventnor's plunge @ the title link.

HAPPY NEW YEAR from
@ the Beach!!